element14 Adds New Open-Source Arduino Whiz Jeremy Blum to its 'Ask an Expert' Engineering Panel

CHICAGO, Jan. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- element14, a collaborative social community and electronics store for design engineers and electronics enthusiasts, today announced the addition of Jeremy Blum to its "Ask an Expert" panel, giving professionals, enthusiasts and DIY-ers alike a valuable resource for Arduino programming questions and topics.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110128/CG38156)

An electrical and computer engineering student at Cornell University, Blum has been working with electronics and building microcontroller projects for several years, including a prototype prosthetic hand with a novel control scheme, shape-shifting and structure-scaling robots, and a Nerf gun that fires on intruders while uploading their pictures online. While Blum has an extensive background in the Arduino programming environment, he also dedicates a significant amount of his "building" time to producing videos and tutorials about his design projects to share knowledge with other electronics enthusiasts.  

"I've been a member of the element14 community for some time now, and I'm a huge fan of 'The Ben Heck Show' and the community's ongoing efforts to support engineers and the exchange of knowledge," said Blum. "As a lifelong computer geek who's really into technology and electronics, I'm really excited to join the element14 panel and help fellow students, enthusiasts and engineering peers. I started making and sharing videos over five years ago because I believe the best usage of the Internet is to spread knowledge to those who desire it, and that is exactly what element14 is all about."

element14's "Ask an Expert" resource offers a panel of engineering professionals with expertise in areas such as embedded design, analog, power management, interconnect technology, signal and power integrity, power sensors, global legislation, and more. Over 35 engineering professionals currently reside on the panel to help address questions, provide feedback, and share ideas and insight with community members.  

"At element14, our mission is to empower the electronics design community through superior information, resources and products," said Alisha Mowbray, senior vice president of marketing, element14. "Not only does our 'Ask an Expert' panel give engineers and enthusiasts access to information they need, but in many cases, it also provides them with the inspiration for their next designs. Jeremy helps round out the program's array of expertise, helping DIY-ers and professionals tackle a range of Arduino programming projects. "

In addition to joining element14's "Ask an Expert" panel, Blum began a new weekly Arduino tutorial series this month for element14 community members, which covers how the Arduino programming environment works, tips for getting started, as well as more complicated programming and circuits design. The element14 community also offers a collaborative global network of peers and experts where engineers and enthusiasts can share information, testing and feedback in dedicated open-source and Arduino discussion groups. For more information on Arduino, visit element14.

About element14

element14 is the first collaborative community, research portal and store for design engineers and electronics enthusiasts. The website provides product data, design tools, technology information and top brand components to seamlessly facilitate the design process; users can consult industry experts and collaborate with peers around the globe. element14 is sponsored by Premier Farnell plc (LSE: pfl), a leader in multi-channel distribution and specialty services for electronic design engineers, trading throughout the Americas (Newark), Europe (Farnell) and Asia-Pacific (element14). The company has group sales of £795.3m and over 4,100 employees globally.

SOURCE element14